Penns vs Little J

[afishinado]

Going back through the thread from the beginning, from my count > 18/0 for Penns!

 

[evw659]

I've thought about this question before, and I agree with the general consensus here. I've only fished Penns half a dozen times, little j over a hundred, but I would still vote Penns for the following reasons:

Remoteness/scenery: Penns by far
Overall challenge and puzzles to figure out presented to fisherman: Penns by far, but your hair might be gone by the time you leave.
Diversity of wildlife that you may run into: Penns
Diversity and overall quality of hatches: Penns by far, though I feel the diversity is starting to return in the lj.
Best chance of 20"+ brown: Probably Penns, but I think theres a lot more big trout (a few over 25") in the lj than most people think. I think they're just really tough to catch for a variety of reasons.
Where to catch the most fish (most of the time): lj for sure
Fishability throughout the year (temp wise): lj
Best chance of relative solitude during prime hatch season: don't really know, used to be lj but it gets worse every year.
Overall consistency of good dry fly water: Probably Penns
Overall consistency of good wet fly water: don't really know, both are good, I would lean Penns
Overall consistency of good nymphing water: lj by far imo
Overall consistency of good terrestrial fishing (assuming good temps): don't really know, but lj hasn't been good for me the last few years.

This is only my opinion, and I'm sure I'm missing stuff.

 

[JackM]

Love them both.

 

[dc410]

JackM wrote:
Love them both.

I totally agree with Jack. I don't get a lot of chances to fish either one but have had some very memorable experiences on both of them over the years. I would say Penns is tough to beat for the solitude of being out there on a piece of water all to yourself and soaking it all in. Both are great fisheries, we are very blessed.

 

[dryflyguy]

The fish seem to rise a little better on the little j IMO.
If there's anything at all on the water, they're be taking it on the surface (with decent water flows of course)

That's certainly not always the case on Penns from my experience

 

[Maurice]

Overall I too would rather fish Penns but let’s be honest, Penns can be a real poke in the eye when it comes to the catching. So perhaps we return for the allure of that one day it was on fire or the beauty but I’d give it 1:5 chance you have a 10 or more fish day unless you hit a spinner fall or decent hatch

The LJ on the other hand is more consistent and gets better each year. The ratio of good fish days is more like 1:2 for me.

Penns is the supermodel you are less likely to come to terms with, while the Little J is more attainable for a long lasting relationship.

Now Spring Creek...well just look around when they turn the lights on at the bar at 2am. That’s spring creek.

So I think we all want to believe Penns is better for us but for me it’s more rejection than success. It’s not a bad place to lose though.

 

[JackM]

I guess, then, Fishing Creek would be the super-hot goth girl with a nose ring.

 

[Maurice]

Boy, don’t u have an imagination. I tried to keep it esoteric. Let’s not turn this post into a sexist photofest.

 

[afishinado]

Maurice wrote:
Boy, don’t u have an imagination. I tried to keep it esoteric. Let’s not turn this post into a sexist photofest.

Yeah...Jack may have to resign in shame if the "me too" movement picks up on his post and pic..... :-?

 

[Fly-Swatter]

Me, too. (Kidding)

I'd say that photo is more of a psuedo-goth girl, though: All the window dressing but none of the sincerity.

 

[boychick]

I love both streams and I have had stellar days and crappy days on both. Both have great fish populations. The hatch diversity seems better on Penns, but the fish on the Little J seem to look up more. Rather than pic one over the other, I make it point to visit both.

That said, if you made me choose, I'd choose Penns because the beautiful valley it flow through.

 

[MD_Gene]

I would pick Penns for many of the same reasons listed by the others. I think that I have caught more fish on the Little-J per unit time spent fishing but I like the ability to get away from the crowds on Penns

Plus, I have a camp not too far from Penns and Fishing Creek is close by....



Enjoy them both.

As an aside. I have caught a trout on my first cast of the day a number of times in the 100's that I have fished. Once, last year, me and 2 other guys were fishing a stretch of the Little-J and each of us caught a trout on our very first cast of the day. I have never ever seen that before!

 

[Doug]

OMG Maurice. I have spent a lot of time on all of these streams, and yours is probably the best description of the three that I have ever seen. Well done!

 

[midnightangler]

Penns has a lot more different kinds of bugs and better hatches overall. I never had the chance to fish the LJR before the spill killed most of the bugs. Of course, the fish do seem to rise more consistently on the LJR.

On average my experience has also been that the fish in penns are a bit bigger. I think this factors into the catch rate.

 

[Acristickid]

So much love for Penns.

Is anyone involved with conservation efforts on Penns Creek?

If so, what are some efforts and projects ongoing? What’s the main concerns? Farming, sediment, postings??

 

[FarmerDave]

LJ

No Rebuttal!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

I actually never fished the LJ, but have been poked in the eye at Penns more than once. For me, that is part of the fun in fishing there. It's a learning experience. If I was only worried about catching lots of fish, I can do that at home.

In other words, my opinion doesn't count.;-)

 

[JackM]

You can do well by nymphing the pockets you find on Penns, but that isn't as much fun as drifting the glides. But when fish are rising on Penns to duns or spinners, it can be glorious. It is much more of the perfect dry fly stream than the Little J, but you will catch more on dries on the Little J. Except sometimes....

 

[zenriver]

Little J has always been more consistent for me as far as hooking goes, but Penns has more mystique for sure. It's just so beautiful and remote. And the drive to Penns both ways removes 2 hours of stream time compared to the J.

 

[troutbert]

Penns has a lot more stream mileage flowing through public lands (state forest & PFBC lands) than the Little J.

I think that has a lot to do with with peoples" experiences and perceptions of the streams.